Sword Master of a Fa Chapter 114 : The Road Is Long, Yet We Still Move Forward (2

Chapter 114: The Road Is Long, Yet We Still Move Forward (2)

At Kyle’s command, Seros had Acacia escort Benshi, who had been imprisoned in the Underground Prison.

Benshi covered his eyes with both hands against the sunlight he was seeing after so long.

His situation had been one of being locked behind iron bars in the appearance of a beggar.

He wondered just how long they intended to keep him alive without killing him.

He had already given all the information Kyle wanted.

And yet Kyle had left him alive.

He had been given only the bare minimum of food—just enough to keep him alive.

He had attempted suicide several tis, but each ti the healers of the Ragnar Family had done their utmost to keep him alive.

Benshi sighed as he recalled his long and exhausting imprisonnt.

“Do you want to die?”

At that mont, Acacia asked Benshi, who was confined in the mobile prison.

“What on earth is Kyle Ragnar thinking? I gave him all the information he wanted. I even begged him to kill . So why did he keep

alive?”

“Our lord must have been waiting.”

“What do you an by that…….”

“He kept you alive simply to reveal the fact that King Clover sold his own citizens to slave rchants. But now you can die as you wished. Congratulations.”

Benshi endured the dazzling light and lowered his hands at Acacia’s words.

At the ntion that he could finally die, joy filled Benshi’s eyes.

He had been imprisoned for so long that he no longer even knew how much ti he had spent in the darkness.

He had fought loneliness, begged to die, and even scread in despair—but Kyle had never accepted it.

“Finally…….”

“Oh, by the way, the Royal Family of the Kingdom of Daon has fallen.”

“……What?”

“Ragnar has been elevated to the royal house, and the Head of the Family has ascended to the position of the new king. Your death will be of great help in stabilizing the kingdom. So you should feel proud of it.”

Benshi fell silent at the news of the kingdom that had changed so suddenly, but before long he accepted it.

‘Well, if it’s Kyle Ragnar, he’s the kind of man who would replace a royal house without hesitation.’

After all, a plan that had taken decades to build had been ruined by a single person.

Because Kyle Ragnar returned to the family, he had been captured, and the foundation he had barely managed to build had completely collapsed.

“So this is the road to the execution ground. My life truly ends now.”

“That’s why you should have chosen the people you joined hands with more carefully. Of all things, you chose to join hands with the Followers of Darkness.”

“……Why does Kyle Ragnar hate the Dark Constellation so much?”

“We were originally the Special Operations Unit of the Tylers Empire. If you had ears, you must have heard that.”

“What?”

Benshi’s eyes widened in shock.

“……Then what was your epithet?”

“Butcher.”

Acacia smiled slyly.

The mont Benshi saw the green hair, bronze skin, and the two Short Spears, he made a face as if it were impossible.

“The one I served was Grand Duke Ian Kylers. And the one who was his close friend—and the master who taught

swordsmanship—is our lord.”

“T-That’s impossible…….”

“Everyone who followed our lord to the Ragnar Family ca from the Special Operations Unit. Honestly, I thought you’d realize it when you heard the commander’s na.”

Death God Seros—one who had received a ducal title in the Tylers Empire.

And recalling the information that he was the second son of a family famous for swordsmanship, Benshi no longer even had the energy to be shocked.

Only then did he realize why he had been defeated so miserably.

Perhaps because of that, a self-deprecating laugh escaped him.

“Targeting the Ragnar Family from the beginning was your mistake.”

As he lowered his head deeply, Acacia also fell silent and moved forward.

Before long, Acacia entered Rak Territory and encountered Kyle, who had just arrived through the Teleportation Gate from the Capital City.

“You have returned, my lord.”

“You’re escorting him.”

“Yes.”

Kyle nodded and approached Benshi, who was imprisoned.

“Withdraw the n.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Acacia pulled back the troops participating in the escort.

Kyle then leaned closer, facing Benshi with only a set of bars between them.

“You’ll finally get what you wanted so badly. It’s a sha. I should have left you to rot longer in prison.”

“Why are you tornting ?”

“Isn’t it obvious? You’re a criminal who dared to touch the territory residents of Ragnar. You committed a cri so grave that even tearing you apart would not ease my anger.”

“I only…….”

“Don’t try to rationalize it.”

“…….”

“Because of you, hundreds—no, thousands—of people might have been forced to live in suffering. And even now, there are probably those who still live that way. Turned into test subjects, spending each day in agony so severe they wish to die.”

Faced with the fury blazing in Kyle’s eyes, Benshi looked up at the sky.

It had not been a life he could proudly call a good one.

Still, even while working as a slave rchant, he had never once thought of it as sothing cruel.

He had simply believed it was natural to trample others to climb higher.

“So if you know your sins, die without resistance.”

“Thank you. For killing .”

“I don’t want to hear such words from you. Acacia, proceed with the escort to the Capital City.”

“Yes, my lord!”

At Kyle’s command, Acacia bowed and continued escorting Benshi to the Capital City.

Afterward, Kyle entered Rak Territory, where many people had co out to welco him.

“We greet Duke Kyle Ragnar!”

“Are the preparations for relocating the territory residents going well?”

As Rak Viscount had been promoted to a marquis and ca to govern the lands that had once been Shartega Territory, the loss of manpower from the existing territory had beco unavoidable.

However, the man standing before Kyle shook his head.

“It is proceeding steadily, but less than thirty percent of the residents wish to follow. They have all expressed their desire to remain in the North.”

“……It would be a chance to live comfortably.”

“They are people who have lived their entire lives in the North. The Head of the Family also said those who wish to remain may stay as they are.”

“Carry it out well. If any problems arise, imdiately send an urgent dispatch to Ragnar. I’ll handle it.”

“Understood. And congratulations on becoming a duke.”

“That title does not hold much aning for .”

After greeting the mbers of the Rak Family, Kyle imdiately turned to depart for Ragnar.

“You are leaving already?”

“There’s a backlog of matters that must be dealt with. I spent too much ti stabilizing the Capital City, so this is no ti to relax.”

As Kyle mounted Seori, the mbers of the Rak Family bowed deeply from the heart.

To them, Kyle was more than the Guardian Deity of the North.

Within the kingdom, the royal house had neglected the North.

Outside, monsters had been running rampant.

And the one who resolved it all was Kyle Ragnar.

Kyle departed from Rak Territory and reached Ragnar Lord’s Castle two days later.

The land was covered in thick snow.

Seori dashed forward joyfully like a fish that had found water.

When Kyle entered Ragnar Lord’s Castle, Seros—who had co from Chaplin Castle after hearing the news—bowed politely.

“You have returned.”

“Gina must have returned as well.”

“She returned not long ago.”

“You’ve worked hard as well. Guarding Ragnar while I was away.”

“It was nothing. Fortunately, the monsters have been quiet, so nothing major happened.”

“That’s only natural. The Lords have all taken positions at the entrance of the Mountain Range.”

There was no monster reckless enough to invade a place where seven Master-level forces existed.

Even creatures that moved by instinct would consider attacking Ragnar—where powerful beings were everywhere—nothing short of suicide.

“My lord, there is actually sothing I could not report earlier.”

“……What is it?”

“It concerns the Mana Stone Mine. I intended to report it once you finished matters in the Capital City and returned.”

“You did well. I couldn’t return to Ragnar imdiately anyway. So what is it?”

“The elves have reported that an Ice Dragon–class monster is being detected inside the Mana Stone Mine.”

Currently, the Lords were cooperating fully for Ragnar’s developnt.

In exchange for Ragnar granting them land, they were doing everything they could to help.

Among them, the elves had been in charge of surveying the mines.

But suddenly, the appearance of such a powerful monster—Kyle stared toward the mountain range where the Mana Stone Mine lay.

“An Ice Dragon–class…….”

“The Lords attempted to enter but stopped. They said they would decide whether to proceed after consulting with you once you returned.”

“Understood. We’ll enter the Mountain Range now.”

At present, Kyle could not remain peacefully in the Lord’s Castle approving territorial matters.

Too many tasks had piled up.

Moreover, the vassals of the Ragnar Family had all moved to the Capital City, making it difficult to fill the resulting gap.

Aron understood this well and promised that once he returned to Ragnar with the Northern Army, he would hold the position as acting lord.

Kyle trusted that Aron—who would return soon—would handle everything as acting lord, which allowed him to move without hesitation.

“I will prepare for departure imdiately.”

“There is no need to prepare troops.”

After all, Kyle and Seros alone were sufficient.

The two traveled to Chaplin Castle and brushed the snow from their clothes as they entered.

Waiting for them was the steward Raina, who bowed politely.

“I greet the duke.”

“Steward Raina, have you been well?”

“I’ve been fine. Except for worrying about the sudden blizzard.”

“In the North, a blizzard is the sa as rain in the interior lands. You worried unnecessarily.”

The sudden blizzard had delayed them as they forced their way through it, but with the Lords present there would likely be no serious problems.

As Kyle entered the lord’s residence of Chaplin Castle and removed his coat, Raina quickly followed behind him.

“I’ll take care of that.”

“I’ll leave it to you. Seros, rest today. It seems we’ll have to enter the Mountain Range tomorrow.”

“Then I will prepare a room and bath. Steward.”

At Seros’s instruction to Raina, she bowed.

“I’ll prepare them imdiately, Castellan.”

While Raina made the preparations, Kyle changed out of his snow-soaked clothes.

Seros also changed and then returned to the room where Kyle was staying.

“Why are you using the guest room instead of the residence where the Castellan stays?”

“This is more comfortable.”

“My lord, shouldn’t you be more mindful of how others see you now? As the Supre Commander of the North, you cannot live only in frugality.”

“Lately, both you and Aron speak quite comfortably to .”

“……My apologies.”

“That’s enough. I think it’s a good sign. Start by giving

the report on Chaplin Castle.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to rest a little before working? It seems you are handling even more duties than when you were in the Tylers Empire.”

Kyle’s lips curled slightly at Seros’s complaint.

Instead of responding to that mysterious smile, Seros sat down in a chair with a nostalgic expression.

“In less than a year since we returned, so many things have changed.”

“Indeed.”

“If you hadn’t returned to the family, my lord… who knows what would have happened…….”

“Pramo would have endured well enough. We simply happened to return at a fortunate ti.”

“Could it really have been simple luck? I know how much effort you made to return to Ragnar.”

At Seros’s words, Kyle shook his head.

Of course, it was true that he had tried to end the war with the Holy Empire of Ru as quickly as possible in order to return to Ragnar.

But thinking about it now, everything had aligned so strangely well that it could almost be called heavenly fortune.

“It was simply heavenly luck.”

After speaking quietly, Kyle stared for a long ti at the snow-covered mountains visible beyond the window.